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Coronavirus cluster: Local lockdown in Aberdeen as Covid cluster grows | |
(32 minutes later) | |
Lockdown restrictions are being reimposed in Aberdeen due to a coronavirus cluster in the city, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced. | Lockdown restrictions are being reimposed in Aberdeen due to a coronavirus cluster in the city, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced. |
Pubs and restaurants will have to close from 1700 on Wednesday. | |
People are being told not to travel to Aberdeen, and those living in the city face travel restrictions. | |
Ms Sturgeon said there were now 54 cases in the "significant outbreak" and that the cluster had involved community transmission. | |
The restrictions mean that the 228,000 people who live in the Aberdeen city area are no longer allowed into each others' houses. | |
They are being told not to travel more than five miles for leisure purposes. Travelling for work or education is permitted, but other travel is not advised. | |
The restrictions will be reviewed in seven days' time and may be extended beyond a week if necessary. | The restrictions will be reviewed in seven days' time and may be extended beyond a week if necessary. |
Ms Sturgeon said the situation in Aberdeen should be "the biggest wake-up call" since the early days of the pandemic. | |
The first minister said the rise in cases around the world had been worrying her in recent weeks, but that for many people this could seem far away. | |
"There's always a sense of 'we're doing well and it won't happen here'," she said. | |
"It can happen here and it is happening here, in Aberdeen." | |
'Extra vigilant' | |
Details of the cluster, which was linked to people who had visited the Hawthorn Bar on 26 July, first emerged on Sunday. | |
Ms Sturgeon said 54 cases had now been associated with the cluster and contact had been made with 191 close contacts. | |
She said the decision to reimpose restrictions had been taken "extremely reluctantly" after discussions with NHS Grampian, Police Scotland and the city council. | |
Asked if it was safe for schools to reopen in Aberdeen next week, the first minister said: "If it's a choice between hospitality and schools, we are choosing schools right now." | |
Scotland has favoured a "boots on the ground" approach when it comes to Test and Protect. | |
As soon as a cluster is detected, local NHS health protection teams take charge of the incident. The belief is that local knowledge is the best way to break a cluster down. | |
It is about that basic principle of person, place and time, and local teams do the detective work. Where has the initial positive case been? Who have they been in contact with? | |
They need to build up a picture of risk from where transmission started. | |
Ms Sturgeon said a list of the 20 licensed venues involved in the outbreak would be published later on Wednesday. | Ms Sturgeon said a list of the 20 licensed venues involved in the outbreak would be published later on Wednesday. |
People who had visited these places recently should be "extra vigilant" about symptoms. | |
The first minister said restrictions on hospitality businesses would be backed by legislation and enforced if necessary. | |
But she added: "I would expect the way they have behaved in recent days the owners of these businesses in Aberdeen will act voluntarily, and I would thank businesses in hospitality for their co-operation so far." | |
The Federation of Small Businesses said government "at all levels" would need to "step up" and help those affected. | |
Andrew McRae said: "While local lockdowns might be necessary to prevent additional nationwide restrictions, today's announcement will be a hammer blow for independent firms in Aberdeen and the north east." |